A/HRC/28/81 64. Mexico requested data on the number of people of African descent and the delegate of the Republic of South Africa inquired about how long the affirmative action measures taken by Brazil would be kept in place, and what event or development had triggered the initiation of the affirmative action policies. 65. Responding to a question from the delegate of the Republic of South Africa about the efficiency of affirmative action, the expert noted that the impact of affirmative action had not yet been assessed in Brazil. She explained that graduates that had entered through the quota system attained lesser results than their peers upon entering university. During the course of their studies, they would often adapt to the new environment and would graduate in greater numbers compared to other students. In general, she noted that it was important to promote education. A smaller number of people of African descent graduated from high school; therefore, fewer people of African descent could attend university. However, as society underwent changes and the level of education among the general population (which was to a large degree of African descent) increased, that problem would decrease. She added that the overall efficiency of affirmative action would be studied during the next ten years. 66. The representative of Morocco asked about lessons learned which could be replicated elsewhere and inquired about why affirmative action policies focused only on people of African descent, while it appeared that indigenous populations were not included. Ms. Monçores noted that the indigenous population was much smaller, whereas people of African descent represented more than half of the country’s population. Her research group studied people of African descent, as research issues concerning the indigenous population were “complex”. She noted that it was not common in Brazil to integrate the study of both groups and that quotas were introduced for both groups. 67. Answering a question from the South African representative, the expert provided some context and noted that plans for introducing affirmative action policies had commenced in 2003. She explained that affirmative action was supported by the strong “Black movement” which had been mobilized in the lead up to the Durban Word Conference against Racism. The delegate added that Brazil was never a true racial democracy, and that indeed strong racism existed not far below the surface. The implementation of affirmative action policies had resulted in more open discussions about race and racism in Brazilian society. 68. The Brazilian representative added that the history of racism in Brazil was characterized by invisibility. In the 1980s, the country still reported to CERD that there was no racism in Brazil. That attitude had changed after the process of democratization. People of African descent were very well organized and Brazil featured a Ministry for Racial Equality. The representative noted that the Durban World Conference against Racism and the subsequent processes were essential to the developments in the country. Some questions were complicated, such as how to correctly address the linkages between socio-economic status and race. 69. The delegate of Mexico inquired about the labour market, and the expert noted that some federal states had introduced quotas for public service – but that was not yet the case at the federal level. Currently, more white people served in the public service than people of African descent (approximately 60 per cent of the public service consists of white civil servants). 70. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela noted that similar problems existed in other countries of the region, which shared a similar history and same context pertaining to racism. He noted that the mandate of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent had been focused on precisely those issues noted in the expert’s presentation. He mentioned that his country supported the policies presented by the 36